There are a number of orthopedic appliances that are used to support or immobilize various body parts. With respect to stabilizing or immobilizing the knee joint because of an injury, some of these orthopedic appliances include the use of inflatable air bladders for intermittently supporting and/or releasing support on the knee. One example of an inflatable knee brace includes U.S. Pat. No. 3,983,056, which describes inflatable tubes stitched into a fabric support extending vertically over a portion of the support. U.S. Pat. No. 4,430,042 describes a pillow type device strapped to the leg of a patient and then inflated. U.S. Pat. No. 4,872,448 discloses a U-shaped inflatable bladder placed over the patella. U.S. Pat. No. 4,938,207 describes a linear brace employing first and second fluid filled chambers. U.S. Pat. No. 4,947,834 describes a brace for compressing a patient's outer extremities, the brace including flexible chambers arranged in a series that are then successively inflated. U.S. Pat. No. 4,960,115 describes a body support apparatus having at least two inflation chambers. U.S. Pat. No. 5,626,557 discloses a knee brace having inflatable supports extending longitudinally on both sides of the knee.
The knee is perhaps the most common joint that is aspirated for purposes of diagnosing ailments of the joint. Such ailments may include infections, inflammatory or crystal arthritis, and others. The knee joint is also commonly aspirated for purposes of administering pharmaceutical agents into the knee joint such as glucocortocoids or visco-supplements. A medical practitioner attending to a patient having a knee joint ailment requires the practitioner to have certain skills in aspirating the knee, and a medical specialist such as an orthopedic surgeon or rheumatology specialist typically performs knee and other joint aspirations. A general practitioner rarely conducts knee aspirations without additional training. Accordingly, increased costs may be incurred because a medical specialist is typically required to conduct the procedure. Even with experienced specialists, knee aspirations can be difficult to perform because there is a very small area in which the aspirating needle can be inserted in the joint without striking pain-sensitive structures including bone or ligaments.
Therefore, there is a need to provide a device that eases the difficulty in performing a knee aspiration procedure, thereby increasing the odds of successfully performing the aspiration without inadvertently contacting surrounding tissue or bone. There is also a need to provide a device that allows general practitioners or other non-specialists to perform the procedure by increasing the size of the area where the needle may be inserted to penetrate the fluid sac surrounding the joint.
With respect to the prior art discussed above, while a number of inflatable knee brace configurations are known, none of the prior art devices provide adequate functionality for facilitating a joint aspiration procedure.